The Deepest Most Desperate Desire
by Elizabeth.June
Summary: A more detailed look at what Ron saw in the Mirror of Erised. Very minor hints of Ron/Hermione.


The Deepest Most Desperate Desire

**Disclaimer: It's all J.K's. I own nothing.**

**Dedication: I wrote this for the DVD/ Blu Ray release of HP7 part 2 and the end of Harry Potter tomorrow (in the US where I live). This is dedicated to the series of books and the wonderful author who restored my faith in reading and gave me my childhood. Because of this series, I started reading again. Thank you J.K Rowling.**

**A/N: I came up with this idea when I was writing my other fic "Musings of a Love Potion Clouded Mind". I wrote a reference to the Mirror of Erised moment in Sorcerer's/ Philosopher's Stone. This is merely what Ron sees when he looks into the mirror. Enjoy! Please R&R**

"RON! YOU'VE GOT TO SEE THIS! RON! YOU'VE GOT TO SEE THIS!" Harry's voice shouted as the door to the first year Gryffindor boy's dormitory swung open with a loud bang against the stone wall. Ron, however, didn't show any intention to get out of his comfy bed any time soon. Frustrated, an invisible Harry yanked the covers off Ron's sleeping form, effectively waking him with the cold December draft.

"RON!" Harry yelled again, hoping to wake his best friend. He tore off the Invisibility Cloak and continued to urge the drowsy red headed boy to get up. "Ron! Come on! Get out of bed!"

The freckle-faced ginger haired boy sleepily sat up on his elbows. He looked at Harry confused; what could he possibly want at this time of the morning?

"Why?" Ron yawned.

"There's something you've got to see! Now, come on!" Harry insisted. Ron hoped Harry had a good reason for waking him up this early as he reluctantly rolled out of his warm bed. He cringed as his bare feet met the cold wood. Harry didn't bother to explain, only pausing to throw the Cloak over the two of them before promptly setting off in the direction of the Mirror again.

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><p>The two raced down the corridors and stairways, through the library, and into the bare room right off the restricted section. As soon as the door to the library door was shut, Harry tossed the Cloak aside and yelled, "RON! Ron! Come look! It's my <em>parents<em>!"

_Parents_, Ron thought. _I thought Harry's parents died years ago, when 'he' attacked._

So, in order to see what on earth Harry could be talking about, Ron ran a little faster; he was genuinely curious to see Harry's parents. _Were they ghosts at Hogwarts?_ Ron wondered.

The gangly red head and skinny black haired boy came to an abrupt stop in front of an old mirror. Ron looked at the old dust-covered antique, and was immediately disappointed. There was nothing special about this mirror; it was just that, a mirror.

The only special thing Ron could see about it was the letters of some foreign language; Runes or Latin maybe? _It might be interesting if you were Hermione_, Ron thought. _I can't even read what it says._

Ron looked more closely at the mirror, hoping he might see a glimpse of his best friend's late family, but all he could see was his own tired reflection and Harry's, which was practically bouncing up and down in excitement.

Ron frowned. "I only see us."

Harry looked at him anxiously, and then figured that Ron simply wasn't looking hard enough. So, he scooted out of the way to put Ron in his spot.

"Look in properly," he suggested. "Go on, stand there." He said as he pointed to the spot he had been standing in when he saw his parents.

With Harry gone out of the reflection, the image in the mirror began to morph and change into a new scene. Where Ron thought his own reflection should have been there was another red haired teenager in his place. The boy's flaming red hair and bright blue eyes were identical to Ron's, but everything else seemed slightly altered. All the baby fat was gone from his face, leaving his jaw looking rather square and strong. This teenager was much more muscular than the little eleven year old boy that stood there gaping at him; well defined arms and chest were prominent in the teen's Gryffindor Quidditich jersey. The boy was grinning widely as he was hoisted on his family's shoulders. The crowd let out a silent cheer, their mouth clearly forming the name 'Weasley' over and over again in a chant. It was then that Ron recognized the faces of this person's family; Fred and George stood next to him, also in Gryffindor jerseys, they and Bill, Charlie, and Percy hoisted him up in the air while Ginny, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley handed him a giant trophy as they too, cheered. Ron realized with a shock that that the only person missing in the family was…

"There you see them, don't you?" Harry said anxiously.

"THAT'S ME!" Ron shouted excitedly. Now that he looked closer, he saw even more similarities between him and this teenager. Ron also observed a small badge on his older self; he'd seen Percy parade around the house with it enough to know what it was. "Only I'm head boy, and I'm holding the Quidditich cup! And bloody hell! I'm Quidditich captain too!" Ron looked at the teenage version of him and saw that he was surrounded by all the girls of Gryffindor house. "I look _good!"_

He continued to look into the Mirror, fascinated by the scene within. The crowd was chanting _his _name; not Bill's, not Charlie's, not Percy's, not Fred's or George's, and not even _Ginny's_. Ron had always been in the shadow of his older brothers; Bill was the oldest giving him a special place as first born in their parents hearts, Charlie was a dragon tamer... He was much more impressive than Ron could ever hope to be. Ron looked in the Mirror at the older version of himself, noticing how strong he looked. His muscles were impressive and had all the girls practically drooling over him. Percy was also much more impressive than Ron was; he was always bringing home a new medal or award than Ron had dreamed of getting. Ron watched his parents praise his brother over each achievement and felt even more inferior than before. His parents had never bragged on Ron because Ron had never done anything to be praised for. Looking at his teenage self, he saw the prefect badge gleaming from his chest. The eleven year old Ron's chest swelled with pride.

Fred and George had always overshadowed their little brother, too. Although, the attention they received from their parents was far from positive, it was still attention. Ron had watched their mother reprimand them every time they played a prank, he had seen and heard every howler they received at Hogwarts this year, but he could help but want to be the one their mother was yelling at. The idea was insane, but it was how Ron thought. Even though the twins begrudgingly took every shout and punishment they knew they deserved, they were at least recognized for doing something. Ron had tried to cause his own kind of mischief, braking a vase or two in hopes that his mother would at least see that he was still there. However, the plan always went awry and the accidents were blamed on the twins.

In the Mirror, Ron gaped at what he now saw. Ginny was tugging on his mother's robes, clearly wanting her mother's attention, but Mrs. Weasley ignored her and kept clapping for Ron. This never happened.

Ginny was always the one who everyone paid attention to, no matter what. It was Ginny who got to lick their mother's baking spoon, Ginny who got the biggest present, who got all the attention. It was because Ginny was the youngest and Ginny was the _girl_. All the Weasley boys knew how much their mother had craved a daughter, and had six sons to finally have her. They all shared the same inferiority complex, knowing that they were not the girl their mother had hoped for, but Ron felt the worst. Ron had been the sixth son, the youngest son, the one that was the last of unwanted boys. The eleven year old boy looked in the strange Mirror and felt hope. Maybe one day, he would get the attention. Was that what this Mirror did? Did this Mirror show things that had yet to pass?

"Harry," Ron asked, "Do you think this mirror shows the future?"

Ron could only hope it did. This Mirror promised a happy future, one that the little ginger haired boy wanted desperately. If the Mirror showed the future, Ron would feel important for the first time in his life.

Then, Ron's hopes were shot down as his best friend spoke.

"How can it?" Harry said solemnly, "Both my parents are dead."

Ron knew that no spell could reawaken the dead; he had asked his mother the day of his grandmother's funeral. Harry's parents were dead and there was no chance of bringing them back. If Harry saw his parents in the Mirror, it did not show the future. The two boys stood there quietly for a long time, Ron looked at what he would never have while Harry looked at the millions of stones that made up the floor beneath him. Neither boy could force themselves to look at the other. After a while, Ron felt his shoulder's slump, the sleepiness pulling at his eyelids.

"I'm tired, Harry." Ron mumbled. "It's too early to be up, we need to go back to bed."

Harry nodded, mutely as he continued to stare at the floor.

Without a word, Harry Potter picked up the Invisibility cloak and put it over the two best friends as they silently made their way back up to Gryffindor Tower.

The picture in the Mirror of Erised slowly faded away, the last image showing a bushy brown haired girl and the red haired boy lovingly embracing as they shared a sweet kiss.

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><p><strong>AN: I hope you liked it! Please leave a review, all my Potter stories have an extremely low supply of those. I know a lot of readers here don't like to criticize, but that's not what I care about. I just want to know that you enjoyed my story, whether you criticize it or not. You can just say 'hi' if you want. I visit each and every one of my reviewers stories, returning the favor :)**

**Thanks for reading!**

**-Elizabeth **


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